Out on the Ice (Out in College 5)

Sky swatted my hand away with a laugh before gliding onto the ice. “You’re forgetting something.…I know how to skate.”

I watched him weave through the weekend skaters with the ease and grace of a dancer. He moved toward a less crowded area, then pivoted to skate backward, flashing a wide, radiant grin at me that made my heart thump like a drum. I slowed to observe him with a dopey smile on my face. No one should look that good under fluorescent lights, bopping their hips to an old Katy Perry song, I mused as I picked up speed and almost took out a fellow skater.

I pulled at her elbow to steady her and apologized.

“Totally my fault. I’m so slow on these. This is what I get for trying to—oh! It’s you.”

Fuck.

“Kendra. Hi. What are you doing here?”

“Funny you should ask. I’m practicing. For Jason. I told him I could skate, but I’m not very good. If he sees me during free skate at the rink by us, he’ll think I’m trying to impress him. And I totally am, but don’t tell him. We just started seeing each other. Well, sort of…we had coffee and he kissed me. I can’t tell if he really likes me or if he’s playing around. What are you doing here? Oh, let me guess. Which one is she?”

“Huh?”

“Your new girlfriend. I told Jason you must be seeing someone, because you never go to any parties anymore. And you had a super goofy look on your face before you bumped into me. Gotta be a girl,” she said, grasping my forearm for balance as she glanced around the ice.

“Uh, no. I’m with Sky,” I blurted. “He lives out here.”

“Oh.” She cocked her head and squinted at me suspiciously. “Are you guys…more than friends?”

I stared at her like a deer in headlights. The direct question caught me by surprise. The answer was on my face. It didn’t matter if I denied it.

But I did.

“Uh…no. Ha. I’m…we’re—”

“Hey, Kendra. How’s it goin’?” Sky asked, coming to a graceful stop beside us.

“Good,” she said, glancing between us. When she let go of my arm, I could practically see her putting puzzle pieces together in her head, and there wasn’t much I could do to stop her.

Sky bumped my shoulder as if to pull me from my trance. “You two are so quiet. What did I miss?”

Kendra shook her head, then opened her arms to balance before pasting a smile on her face. “Nothing. I’m here with my sister. Our parents live nearby and…”

She rambled on for a minute or two about fuck knows what. I tuned her out and did my best not to freak out as I weighed the possible damage she might do. She was dangerous because she didn’t mean any harm. A couple of mistimed words could really fuck up my life, though. Or maybe I was being dramatic. I studied Sky, nodding his head and chatting amicably with her. For all I knew, he was the one giving us away. The longer I stared at him, my mind shifted to other thoughts. I wanted to ask when he learned to skate, who taught him, and if he knew any tricks. I wished my tongue didn’t feel so damn heavy.

“…throwing the ball around at the park with a few of my teammates, but I think Colby has to get back to Long Beach soon,” Sky said, nudging me again.

“Yeah, I do. Um, see you around, Kendra.”

“You’ll see me tonight. I’ll be at the game,” she replied cheerily. “But I’m done here for the day. I don’t think my ankles can take much more. Later, boys!”

I watched her wobble on the ice, then glide toward the nearest wall for purchase.

“Are you okay?” Sky asked.

I scratched my stubbled jaw and pursed my lips. “Honestly…I’m not sure.”

We didn’t stay at the rink for long. I wasn’t good company, and I couldn’t articulate what was wrong in the middle of family skate time. I was quiet on the short drive to Sky’s place. I pulled up to the curb behind Micah’s ancient Toyota and smiled when he grumbled about having to deal with his roommate.

“He’ll probably act like nothing happened. Asshole.” He hooked his thumb and motioned for me to open the trunk. “I need to get my stuff. Are you coming in or—”

“She knows.”

Sky went perfectly still. “What do you think she knows exactly?”

I gave him a quick rundown of our exchange and let out a ragged breath. “I wanted to tell her not to say anything, but if I had that’s the same as admitting we are a couple, right? I can’t win.”

“Do you think she’ll say anything to Schultz? She’s not malicious, you know.”

“No, but she’s a talker. I’ll pull her aside after the game. Hopefully, I’ll figure out how to word this without coming out,” I said, raking my fingers through my hair. “This wouldn’t be a big deal if Schultz wasn’t in the picture. I know this sounds paranoid, but I wonder if he’s using her against me. Like he’s trying to take my girl behind my back. He’s the kind of dickwad who uses weird power plays.”